The Seeker In Red

Chapter 7 (Book 1)

When Charles woke up, he was buzzing with energy. He was really happy that yesterday was not just some kind of fever dream that he came up with. He was here, in Gryffindor, with his new friends. He went through his memories of yesterday slowly, relishing in each happy memory. And then it dawned on him. Max, or well, Verstappen, was not the nice, albeit sarcastic boy that he met at the Grand Prix. Apparently, that was just a façade. The real Verstappen was a cold spoiled brat that gladly put others down. Just, beautiful. At least he had Pierre and Yuki, his friends, here in this room with him and also some other French boy called Esteban.
His thinking was interrupted by an alarm, probably set according to their schedule by someone who knew the spell. ,,Gosh, shut it! I want five more minutes…” Yuki groaned. ,,Wake up Yukino, we need to get ready.” Pierre yawned and flicked his wand – to shut the alarm. ,,Good morning.” The French boy, Esteban, greeted them as he sat on his bed. ,,What time is it?” he asked. ,,It´s… 6:50.” Pierre replied, glancing at the magic clock that was floating above the door. ,,When do we start?” Yuki asked, still laying in his bed. ,,At 8.” Charles replied. ,,Then why-“ Yuki gestured angrily towards him. ,,Had the alarm been set for this early?” ,,We need to get ready, of course. Also, we need to have breakfast and then we should go to find the dungeons so we’re not late.” Charles explained to which Yuki only groaned. ,,What Yukino? You´re not a morning person?” Pierre laughed. ,,No.” Yuki grumbled.
,,I´m going to shower.” Esteban said and grabbed his robe and toiletries. ,,Okay!” Pierre nodded and continued making fun of Yuki. ,,I call dibs on going second!” Charles said. ,,Please do. I´m going last.” Yuki said and glared at Pierre who was giggling to himself. ,,Okay Yuki, I won´t make fun of you anymore.” Pierre crawled out of his bed, and onto Yuki’s and patted his shoulder. ,,Thank God.” Yuki rolled his eyes and laid onto his bed once again. Pierre was watching him for a second, as if contemplating his choices, then he started to tickle Yuki. ,,NOoo!” Yuki screamed. ,,Pierre stop!” he said. Charles laughed, and got his clothes ready. Simple black socks, his robe, black trousers and his Gryffindor tie. When Esteban opened the door to their bathroom and saw Pierre and Yuki, he stopped in his track. He had wide eyes. ,,Uhm okay.” He murmured and went to his bed.
Charles went in. He placed his clothes to a shelf near his towel and went to clean himself. When he was done, he quickly dried himself, washed his teeth and dressed. He had a little trouble with his tie, but he soon figured it out. When he got out, Yuki and Pierre were no longer on the same bed since Pierre was getting his stuff. ,,Hope you hadn´t used all the hot water.” Pierre said. Charles saw Yuki roll his eyes. ,,I hope he did.” Pierre shoot an offended look to Yuki and closed the door behind him. Charles couldn´t help but snicker. He loved this place already.
It was 7:21 when they finally emerged from their room. Esteban left before them, meeting with some Canadian from Hufflepuff. ,,See Yukino! We have around 20 minutes to eat, then we need to go find the classroom.” Pierre said. ,,Well maybe if you hadn´t tortured me, then we would´ve been here already.” He argued. ,,Well-“ Pierre opened his mouth to reply, but Charles stopped them. ,,Both of you, shut the fuck up.” He said and continued looking around, until he spotted a familiar face. ,,Oh hey Carlos!” He greeted the Spaniard from yesterday. ,,Hey Charles. Wanna sit with us?” he smiled. ,,Yea sure.” Charles smiled back. ,,Now come on you two. Let´s go.” He said.
,,You have potions first?” Carlos asked when they sat. Charles nodded and grabbed a piece of bread. ,,Yep. With Slytherins.” He added and he grabbed eggs from the floating plate. ,,I have free period next and I´ve already discussed with Horner whether can I join this class.” Carlos explained. Charles hummed, as he was chewing on his breakfast and it was rude to talk with his mouth full. Yuki, who did not care at all, asked: ,,Why would you do that?” ,,I wanted the extra credits. Plus, I like Horner and Potions so why not.” Carlos explained calmly.  ,,Ooh can you show us where is the classroom then?” Pierre asked. ,,Of course.” Carlos smiled and continued eating his breakfast.
After they finished eating, they had like 16 minutes. ,,Have you brought your things with you to breakfast?” Carlos asked. ,,Yep, we didn´t want to risk being late.” Pierre said. ,,Right Yukino?” Pierre patted Yuki´s head, to which the shorter elbowed him in the ribs. ,,Ow!” Carlos laughed. ,,Okay that certainly spares us some time. So let´s go.” He said. The first graders followed  Carlos into the underground of the castle. ,,So these are the Slytherins dorms.” He pointed at the big doors. They were just opening, a group of- well Verstappen and his friends were just walking out. ,,Daniel Ricciardo! How are you doing?” Carlos greeted the oldest of the group. ,,Carlos! I´m good mate. I was just going to show these two where to go, then run to transfiguration. You?” Daniel replied, smiling. The first graders just kind of stood there, sharing glances. ,,History is off today, so I had a free period. I decided to join on Horner´s today and show these three where to go.” He smiled. ,,Guys, this is Daniel. He is Slytherin from my grade.” Carlos introduced them. ,,Oh they already know me..” Daniel´s smiled went down a bit. ,,But I hope that they don´t have a bad impression of me!” Carlos raised his eyebrow. ,,We should go.” Max said, interrupting the awkward silence. Both Carlos and Daniel nodded. ,,Yea, let´s go.”
Soon they were in front a closed door at the end of a hall. ,,These, my friends, are the dungeons. Behind these doors, you will learn how to make potions.” Daniel gestured wildly at the door. ,,Yep. He is telling the truth.” Carlos nodded. ,,Do you think that we will work in teams?” Lando asked Max. ,,Probably not. It´s the first day.” Max replied academically. ,,Actually, we will.” Carlos said, entering the conversation in between the two Slytherins. ,,Mr. Horner always starts with a simple potion. It is meant to strengthen the bond amongst students.” Carlos continued. ,,Yea. I was paired with Kvyat.” Daniel replied. ,,So… how long until someone let´s us inside?” Yuki asked. Daniel glanced at his watch. ,,Well, about three minutes. Which also means that I´ve got to go.” ,,Aww, cabrón! See ya around!” Carlos patted the Australian´s shoulder. ,,See y´all!” Daniel smiled at them and they waved back. Then he left.
They stood there awkwardly for the entirety of the three minutes. The awkwardness was thankfully interrupted by a man walking towards them. The chatter from other students had died down. ,,Good morning.” He spoke. ,,Good morning.” They managed to parrot back. With a flick of his wand, he opened the door to the dungeon and went inside. Most students, including our group of awkwardness, rushed in, pushing each other. So, to no ones surprise, except the students´, they ended separated. The room was full of two-person desks that had cauldrons on them. Lando was pushed to side, ending standing next to someone in one of the desks. ,,Oh hi.” He said when he looked at the person. ,,Hey, I´m Carlos.” The Spaniards smiled at him. Lando felt nervous when talking to the older boy. ,,I´m Lando.” The Brit replied rather shyly. He looked around, curious who Max ended with. ,,Oh my god.” He giggled. Max was standing next to Charles, both boys refusing to look at each other. ,,What´s with them?” Carlos leaned from behind Lando, his warm breath brushing against the younger´s curls. ,,Max did not make a good impression in the train. He acted kinda… like a snob jerk that his father wants him to be.” Lando replied, not caring about exposing Max´ family. ,,Oh. Jos Verstappen is his father?” Carlos asked, still not moving, still making Lando nervous. ,,Yep. How did you know?” Lando turned around, his curious eyes looking at Carlos´. ,,Heard the rumours. Also, my father worked with his father, and I heard some complaints.” Carlos shrugged. ,,But he is nice, no?” Lando nodded and glanced at Max, who was shyly eyeing Charles. ,,If you give him a chance.”
,,Attention please.” The man raised his voice, and the chatter died out instantly. He was quite short, but human height nonetheless. He was wearing a black button up and trousers. He has round face and short greyish hair. ,,My name is Christian Horner. You will address me as Mr. Horner.” His accent was British. ,,I will teach you Potion class through your time here at Hogwarts. For those of you that are from muggle families, welcome! This will be like Chemistry class. “ he smiled at the children in front of him. ,,You will learn the art of healing, embracing abilities and later even in potions that manipulate luck, or cause death.” Students whispered to themselves. ,,Today I will introduce you to a simple potion and its ingredients. You will work with your classmate – hence the two-person desks.”
,,So… you any good at this?” Lando turned to Carlos. ,,You are in luck cariño.” Carlos winked at him, and little Lando Norris felt heat rising to his face. He stopped looking at Carlos´ face, instead focusing on Max.
,,Uhm… Were you any good at chemistry?” Max turned to Charles. ,,Nope. I sucked.” Charles shook his head. ,,Well hopefully we don´t kill ourselves.” Max joked. Charles giggled and looked at Max, who looked really pleased with himself. ,,Okay. Open the books at page 15.” Horner said and gestured to some kid at the front. ,,Introduce yourself and read the ingredients. ,,My name is Alexandra Saint-Mleux, I am from Gryffindor.” The girl stood up and said her name. ,,She is like you!” Max whispered to Charles, who raised an eyebrow. ,,She´s French. Like you.” Max replied, a mischievous glint in his eyes. ,,I AM NOT FRENCH!” Charles elbowed him. ,,Ow.” Max let out and smiled.  ,,For the sleeping draught potion we will need  Flobberworm Mucus, lavender, Valerian sprigs and Standard Ingredient. Flobberworm Mucus, lavender, Valerian sprigs and Standard Ingredient.” The girl, Alexandra continued. ,,Good. I will know explain what each ingredient does and what effect it has on the potion. We can start with the Flobberworm…” Horner said and flicked his wand to summon one specimen. ,,This is the thing.”
After eternity  (15 minutes), Horner was done with his explaining. ,,Okay. You can do your potion. If you are unsure or have any questions, feel free to ask me.” ,,Okay so how do we do this?” Charles asked. ,,You can read the instructions.” Max shrugged. ,,Oh fuck off.” Charles snorted. ,,Read the instructions.” Max commanded. ,,Okay Mr. Verstappen.” Charles rolled his eyes. ,, Crush the wormwood, add to cauldron. Stir slowly.” Charles read from the book. Max nodded and took the wormwood, crushed it and well, stirred it. ,,See?” Max gestured to the cauldron. ,,I can do it.” He smirked. ,,Yea yea. Mister I-am-better-than-everyone-else.” Charles said in overly sweet voice. Max frowned and rolled his eyes. ,,What´s next princess?” he asked. ,,Excusez-moi?” Charles gasped. ,,Who are you calling a princess?” he added, offended. ,,You.” Max smiled cheekily, and Charles scoffed. ,,Let´s continue.” He added. Max patted him on shoulder. ,,Could you read the instruction shat?” ,,Only if you let me do something.” Charles replied. ,,Fine.”
,,Here.” Charles handed the book to Max. ,,Okay. So the next step is… Chop the valerian, add to cauldron, and apply a high heat.” He read. ,,Okay. Just to make sure, this,” he waved it in front of Max´ face, causing him to sneeze. ,,Bastard. But yes.” He nodded. ,,Good.” Charles smiled and started chopping. ,,What the hell are you doing?” Max asked. ,,Cutting?” Charles lifted his gaze from the plant. ,,You are doing it wrong.” Max said, gesturing to the knife. ,,You’re holding the knife wrong, and the pieces are too big.” ,,Oh mon Dieu. Just do it yourself.” His tone hinting at his annoyance, he took a step away. Max´ eyes widened. ,,You sure? I could just-“ ,,Shut it. I will read the instructions.” Charles interrupted Max. ,,Okay… Thank you.” Max said more quietly.
,, Juice your Flobberworm and add its thick mucus to your cauldron.” Charles read. ,,Okay. On it.” Max responded quietly. ,,Should I-“ Max started. ,,I don´t know, Verstappen. You are the perfect wizard from the perfect family here.” Charles scoffed. Max went completely silent. ,, Stir vigorously, apply a low heat and then give it another stir.” Charles said after he saw that Max finished the task. He waited for a reply, or at least a hum, but none came. ,,Stir vigorou-“ ,,I heard you.” Max replied coldly, not even bothering to look at him. ,,Then fucking reply.” Charles argued. Max still wasn´t looking at him. ,,Verstappen.” Charles threatened. ,,What?” Max finally turned to him, his eyes baring into the Monagasqué. Charles was surprised by the coldness and the lack of emotion, maybe except hatred, in Max eyes. ,,I want you to reply to me.” Charles said. ,,Hmm.” Max nodded and continued stirring. Charles was getting angrier and angrier at this Dutch boy. He saw him stirring the potion and then he got an idea.
,,What´s next?” Max asked, voice still quiet and cold. ,,You should Chop the Sopophorous bean and add to cauldron.” Charles read. ,,Hm.” Charles rolled his eyes. ,,Could you add this to the cauldron?” Max asked after he finished with his task. Charles nodded and Max went to wash his hands. That´s when he got an idea. When Max turned around, Charles “slipped and the Sopophorous landed on Max´ chest. ,,What the hell Charles?!” Max asked. ,,Sorry.” Charles said, but the apology did not reach his eyes, as they had a mischievous glint to them. ,,You did that on purpose!” Max accused. ,,Me? Non.” Charles shook his head. The commotion didn´t went unseen and Horner came by to check on it. ,,Max, what happened?” he looked at the Dutch boy. ,,I told him to add the Sopophorous into the potion while I went to wash my hands. When I turned around, he “slipped” and now I am dirty.” Max explained, even make sure that Horner knew that he doubted that it was an accident. ,,It´s not fair right?” Horner nodded. ,,Thank you Max. Charles? What happened with Max?” Charles gave Max a smirk, that apparently Horner didn´t see and then proceeded to act like an angel. ,,Nothing just an Inchindent.” He replied. ,,Okay then. Max clean up and Charles, finish the potion.” Horner said and left them. Max glared at Charles, who only gave him a cheeky smile, and went to clean up.
,,Did you see that?” Lando asked Carlos. ,,The Inchident?” Carlos asked. ,,I did.”  ,,They are going to be a pain in the ass.” Lando stated. ,,Probably. Unless they get their shit together.” Carlos said. ,,Okay, how can I help you?” Lando asked and looked at the potion. ,,Read the instruction.” Carlos smiled. Lando nodded and grabbed the book. ,, Add a sprinkle of powdered asphodel petals and a dash of essence of nettle.” He read. ,,Okay, gracias Lando.” Carlos smiled and continued to work on the potion, with his back turned to Lando. Who was blushing thanks to the words said to him. He felt the flutter of butterflies in his stomach. ,,Shit.”
Esteban stirred the potions. ,,Okay, est-ce tout?” (is that all?) he asked. ,, Oui. Le livre le dit.” (yes. The book says so.) Pierre answered. ,, Que leur est-il arrivé ?” (What happened with them?) Pierre asked after he turned around and saw Max and Charles glaring daggers at eachother. ,, Aucune idée mec.” (no idea man.) Esteban shrugged. ,, Où est ton ami? Le court?” (where is your friend? The short one?) Esteban asked after a while. Pierre looked around. ,, Oh! Là. Devant ce Serpentard et ce Gryffondor.” (Oh. There. In front of that Slytherin and Gryffindor.) ,,How long have you known him?” Esteban switched to English. ,,About two days?” Pierre replied, confused. ,,Only? You two seem as close as me and Lance, and we´ve known each other since we were 4.” Esteban said. ,,Okay, who´s this Lance?” Pierre raised his eyebrow. ,,He´s a first-year too. In Hufflepuff.” Esteban explained. ,,Oh. He´s the one you went to breakfast with?” Pierre asked, and Esteban nodded.
Before they knew it, Horner was checking on their potions. ,,You guys did quite well. Good job. You can go change into your normal clothes. Have a nice day.” ,,Wait! What do you mean change into your normal clothes?” one of the students asked. ,,Oh. The did not tell you? You only have to wear your robes on special occasions and potion classes. Unless a teacher tells you otherwise.” Horner explained. ,,Ooooooooooooh.” The students replied. ,,Seriously, had no one told you?” Horner asked. The students went quiet and shook their heads. ,,Well, now you know. Have a good day.” ,,Good day sir.” They replied and went outside the classroom.
,,What do we have next?” Yuki asked when he caught up with Pierre and Charles. ,,Let me check.” Pierre replied and flicked his wand, summoning a schedule. ,,We were supposed to have history… but it´s off.” Pierre said. ,,Well, let´s go change.” Charles said and started walking towards the stairs. ,,With who were we about to have the history anyway?” Yuki asked once he caught up with Charles and Pierre. ,,Slytherin.” Charles said coldly. ,,Slytherin? That reminds me – what the hell was going on with you and Max?” Yuki asked curiously. ,,Yea, I would like to know too.” Pierre joined in. Charles scoffed. ,,He was being a snob asshole, so I got my revenge.” Charles replied nonchalantly. ,, I thought that it was just an Inchident? Have you lied to Horner?” A sarcastic Dutch voice said from behind him. Max Verstappen was walking behind them. ,,What do you want, Verstappen?” Charles asked, still annoyed. ,,I´m going to my dorm.” He answered coldly. ,,Now if you excuse me, princess.” He added as he pushed Charles a bit to the side, overtaking him and walking in front of them. ,,You are slow.” He said, then opened the door to the Slytherin Dungeon. ,,Connard.” Charles muttered. ,,You´ve only know each other for 2 days and you already have a rivalry going on?” Yuki rolled his eyes. ,,He´s a dick.” Charles replied and glared at the door to Slytherin Dungeon.
,,How do you like it here so far?” Carlos asked the younger Brit. ,,It´s nice. I have my friends, made a knew one and I am in Slytherin.” Landor replied. ,,Yep, you have me cariño.” Carlos smiled and ruffled his hair. ,,You won´t be attending more classes with me, no?” Lando asked. ,,Probably nope. But we can still hangout, sí?” Carlos smiled at him. The warm smile made Lando´s stomach flutter. ,,Of course, you muppet.”